Hard-Headed: How Maryland's Katie Gallagher Battled Back from Crohn's Disease

Her teammates never saw her cry, nor show any signs of fear. When it came to Katie Gallagher, she was a running piece of consolidated steel, deterring anything that came near the Maryland goal mouth. It’s why it was heart wrenching to hear Gallagher’s muffled cries in the middle of the night. They’d go echoing through the house Gallagher shared with her four Terrapin teammates, who would often stay up and comfort her, cry with her, feel her pain.

Each time Gallagher tried ignoring what was happening to her, she’d push harder in practice; she’d fight through it, that it would eventually go away. It didn’t. The stomach pain would persist. So would the fear of losing her senior year of lacrosse.

This Thanksgiving week holds a special, deeper meaning for the Maryland red-shirt senior low defender. She’s gotten lacrosse back. This fall the 5-9 defensive terror returns as the best defender the national champion Terrapins have.

It’s light years from where Gallagher was this time last year. Her mind was full of doubt about what was happening to her body, until she was diagnosed last December with severe Crohn's disease, an inflammatory bowel disease of the intestines that may affect any part of the gastrointestinal tract from mouth to anus, causing a wide variety of symptoms. It primarily causes abdominal pain, diarrhea (which may be bloody if inflammation is at its worst), vomiting, or weight loss.

Gallagher experienced the full gamut.

She was falling apart each morning, able to feel her clothes getting looser by the week. The Crohn’s flare ups began late September 2009 and into early October. Gallagher was recovering from the flu and thought the rapid weight loss and constant stomach discomfort was a byproduct of that.

Little did she know. Little did anyone know.

"The biggest fear was not knowing,” Gallagher recalls. “You feel all these things, yet the only thing that was going through my mind was how the hell was I going to get back on the lacrosse field. I was a mess. I was falling behind with my classes, and I mean way, way behind. I went through a month of being poked and prodded by doctors—everything.

“I’m this tough Jersey girl, and I don’t think I cried that much in my life as much as I during those two months, because I didn’t know what was going on. It was terrible.”

And everyone around Gallagher was feeling it, too. She wears a tough exterior on the field, cloaking a magnetic, endearing personality off it. The Terrapins were expecting big things from Gallagher in 2010, and to hear them all talk, they sound more like sisters than teammates. Gallagher didn’t want to let them down.

“That’s Kate,” said former Terp Amanda Spinnenweber, who shared a house with Gallagher and teammates Allie Perkins, Caitlyn McFadden and Karissa Taylor last year. “Kate is the toughest person I ever met. I never saw her cry over anything; no injury would faze her, and things that normal people get stressed about, she didn’t when she got sick. She’s tough like a boy in a girl’s body.”
Their house was two stories, and Spinnenweber lived upstairs. There were some days when Gallagher couldn’t get out of bed and Spinnenweber would bring her food. Some nights were so bad, the girls would hear Gallagher’s crying sniffles.

“It’s still tough talking about it,” said Spinnenweber, a crack of emotion running through her voice at the recollection. “Kate put on this straight face and you never really knew what was going on, regardless of the pain that she was in. We were all scared about what was going on. I remember she was crying and couldn’t walk, and I was got so upset seeing her like that. We were almost relieved to hear that it was Crohn’s and not something more serious.”

Maryland coach Cathy Reese and her coaching staff aided Gallagher in obtaining a medical withdraw from the 2009 fall semester. She underwent a battery of tests in November and was diagnosed with Crohn’s. “I was ready for it,” Gallagher said. “We had an idea it was Crohn’s, so when we found out, it was good to have a diagnosis and how we could fix it. But I have to be honest, my first question was when could I get back on the field again; it was a real fear that I wouldn’t be able to play again.”

Reese stuck by Gallagher last spring. Reese knew the special bond Gallagher and the seniors on that team had—and with the Terps in the national championship picture, she wasn’t about to take that away. But Reese also saw the struggles Gallagher endured to get back. Gallagher was sluggish, not moving the way she typically did. Her endurance was shot, as she tried different medications that would address the Crohn’s.

“I wasn’t going to give up on Kate last spring, I wouldn’t have had it any other way, but Kate’s overall health was a lot more important to us than playing last year,” Reese said. “One of Kate’s strengths is that she’s hardheaded, and a super-hard worker. She wanted to work through it. But sometimes we had to sit her out because she wasn’t going to check out on her own. Deep down, she knew.”

Gallagher received a medical red-shirt, though each morning practice, she got up with her teammates and was there on the sidelines, urging them on. She was there when the Terps rallied from a six-goal deficit to upset five-time defending national champion Northwestern, 13-11, last May to win the NCAA national title. Gallagher might not have been on the field for the official coronation, but she felt as much a part of that team as anyone.

Now she’s back. Her current medication suppresses the protein that causes symptoms of Crohn’s, but weakens her immune system. She’s watching her diet and added the muscle she lost last year. In an odd way, Gallagher also carries a gift—and thankful for everyone who’s supported her and stuck by her while she endured one of the most tumultuous experiences of her life.

“This Thanksgiving does mean a lot to me, because I have so much to be thankful for,” Gallagher said. “I want to increase awareness of Crohn’s, and I don’t think I’ve ever been so happy in my life. I absolutely look at everything differently than I did a year ago. I found out how many people care about me. I have great coaches, great friends and a great family. I may be battling Crohn’s, but how many people have all that?

“I thought the hardest part about coming back this year would be without my class who I lived with four years. Without them, I didn't know what I would do, we were so close, but I’m enjoying every minute of this. It’s why I’m so thankful for what I have this year—I get to spend another year with 33 of my best friends in the world and do something I love. I can say I’m really thankful—especially to my coaches. They gave me back what Crohn’s stole from me—another year of lacrosse.”